An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics

The phenomenon whereby the presence of a → magnetic field can make a portion of → compressible fluid less dense than its surroundings, so that it floats upward under the influence of gravity. This magnetic buoyancy is thought, in fact, to be the mechanism by which magnetic flux tubes rise through the Sun’s → convection zone and break at the surface in the form of → sunspots. The Sun’s rotation would have a major effect on the rate at which these magnetic flux tubes rise.
The rotation substantially lengthen the time taken for the flux tubes to reach the surface (D. J. Acheson, 1979, Nature 277, 41).

See also: → magnetic; → buoyancy.